Disc mower conditioner

ABSTRACT

A disc mower conditioner utilizing a modular disc cutterbar to sever standing crop material by impact action supports the cutterbar from the header of the mower conditioner by a pair of transversely spaced support arms mounted by spherical bushings to the header to allow flexing of the support arms as induced by the cutterbar. The mounting of the spherical bushings utilize conical washers engagable with conical sockets in spacers to limit vertical movement of the spacer relative to the header when the corresponding support arm flexes. The mower conditioner header further includes an optional viney crop guide that has a curved leading edge that directs viney crop downwardly into engagement with the adjacent disc cutter. The viney crop guide is also bent inwardly to contain and control the flow of crop material. The mower conditioner swathboard includes a position control mechanism that incorporates a positive down stop in the form of a pin riding within a corresponding slotted opening in an associated bracket to prevent the swathboard from coming into an inadvertent engagement with the conditioning rolls.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to a machine for severing standingcrops from the ground to initiate a harvesting process and, moreparticularly, to a mower conditioner incorporating a rotary disccutterbar having a preselected number of transversely oriented cuttermodules having rotatable discs supported thereon and carrying knives tosever standing crop by an impact action and convey the severed crop to aconditioning mechanism before being discharged to the ground.

Disc cutterbars have been utilized in agricultural harvesting implementsfor many years. Each disc cutterbar includes a plurality of transverselyspaced disc cutters driven for rotation about a generally vertical axis.Each disc cutter has two or three knives pivotally mounted on theperiphery thereof to sever standing crop from the ground through animpact action. For background information on the structure and operationof disc cutterbars, reference is made to U.S. Pat. No. 4,815,262, issuedto E. E. Koch and F. F. Voler, the descriptive portions thereof beingincorporated herein by reference.

The construction of disc cutterbars has evolved over the years to theconfiguration of having a modular construction with cutter modules andspacer modules, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,840,019, issued to L.J. Pingry, the descriptive portions of which are incorporated herein byreference. In some instances, the cutter modules and the spacer moduleswere integrally formed into one unit such as shown and described in U.S.Pat. No. 4,947,629, issued to R. Ermacora and H. Neuerburg.

It has been found that the specific use of the disc cutterbar apparatus,e.g. whether used as part of a disc mower, such as shown and depicted inU.S. Pat. No. 4,955,187, issued to C. van der Lely, which is typicallysupported at one end, or as part of a disc mower-conditioner whichusually provides support to the cutterbar at both opposing ends thereof,carries with that particular use a different set of design parametersthan other machines in which the cutterbar is utilized.

For example, the load imparted stresses relative to the spacer segmentsor modules on a disc mower cutterbar are different that thecorresponding stresses on a disc mower-conditioner cutterbar. Thetensile loads on the cutterbar are highest at the rear and center whenused in a disc mower-conditioner, but at the front and inboard tractorend of the cutterbar when utilized in a disc mower.

A modular disc cutterbar of the type shown in the aforementioned Pingrypatent is made up of segments comprising drive modules and spacermodules which can be joined at flange faces with retention mechanismslike threaded fasteners. The cutterbar spacer modules which are used tospace and support the drive modules need to be sized to carry thehighest loads. Because of the need to keep spacer modules with a uniformsize and configuration no matter where the location the spacer is usedalong the transverse length of the cutterbar, the same spacerconfiguration is used along the full length of the cutterbar, resultingin some spacer modules being lightly loaded and constructed stronger andheavier than is structurally needed.

The weight of the completed disc mower assembly on a discmower-conditioner needs to be as light as possible to minimize therequired size of the cutterbar flotation springs and to reduce theinertia forces imposed on the cutterbar components when the cutterbarstrikes and slides over an obstacle at high ground speeds. The weight ofthe cutterbar when utilized in a disc mower configuration also needs tobe as light as possible to minimize the force and friction from theground to minimize the wear of the ground contacting skid shoes, andalso to minimize the damage to the crop which comes in contact with theskid shoes. A further consideration in keeping the weight of thecutterbar as light as possible is to reduce the loads imposed on theframe components when the disc mower is placed into a transport positionin which the total weight of the cutterbar is supported by the frame. Acorollary consideration is the desire to keep these frame components aslight as possible.

The disc cutterbar when used in a disc mower conditioner is supportednear its ends with the center of the cutterbar underneath theconditioning rolls being unsupported. During operation in the field, theground forces are exerted upward onto the cutterbar skid shoes. Theseforces deflect the cutterbar upward, particularly if the cutterbar isbeing operated on a ridge near the center of the cutterbar. Thisdeflection of the center of the cutterbar causes the cutterbar supportarms to also deflect. The rise of the mid-span of the cutterbar causesthe cutterbar to bow and to twist the support arms. A rigid fixation ofthe support arms onto the disc mower conditioner header can result incracking of the header side sheets.

It is important to maintain the cutterbar in a nearly precise verticalposition relative to the header. Too much vertical motion of thecutterbar due to radial clearance at the cutterbar arm support jointswill allow the cutterbar knives to strike the lower conditioning rolland cause the cutterbar drive joint to slide on its drive shaft, whichcan cause the shaft and joint hub to wear and/or apply a thrust load onthe drive shaft as the cutterbar raises and lowers relative to theheader while the drive is transmitting power.

When cutting long viney crops with a disc mower conditioner, a device isneeded to guide the vines into the cutterbar knives so that the vinesare cut rather than caught and pulled by the conditioning rolls. Thevines that cause the most problem are growing laterally to the header.If the vines are not cut, but instead are pulled by the conditioningrolls, the power to the rolls increases significantly. The tractorengine RPM drops and the torque on the driveline components increases,and the rolls' lugs wear. In addition, the vines can wrap on the rollsif the vines are not cut.

Trailed implements, such as disc mower conditioners, with lift systemsthat are positioned with one or more hydraulic cylinders require adevice to positively lock the implement in the raised position to insurethat during transport on the highway the implement will not lower due toa hydraulic leak or failure. A mechanism is needed to permit theoperator to engage a lever before getting onto the tractor that willengage the locking device automatically when the implement is raisedinto the transport position and bias the locking device in the lockedposition.

The same device is needed to also permit the operator, having arrived atthe field, to engage the operator before getting on to the tractor suchthat the locking device will unlock when the implement is raised fullyso that the operator can commence to use the implement without againdis-mounting from the tractor to unlock the locking device. The deviceis to also hold the locking device in the unlocked position so that thelocking device does not engage when the implement is raised during fieldoperation to clear the cut crop or an obstacle.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of this invention to overcome the aforementioneddisadvantages of the prior art by providing improvements to known discmower conditioner construction.

It is another object of this invention to provide a position controlmechanism for the mower conditioner swathboard that incorporates a downstop to prevent the swathboard from engaging the conditioning rolls.

It is a feature of this invention that the position control mechanismfor the swathboard incorporates a pin movable within a slot in anassociated bracket to define extreme limits to the amount of movementpermitted the swathboard.

It is an advantage of this invention that the position control mechanismfor the mower condition swathboard incorporates a down stop to preventan inadvertent dropping of the swathboard onto the conditioning rolls.

It is another advantage of this invention that the conditioning rollsare spared damage from an inadvertent engagement with the swathboard.

It is still another advantage of this invention that the mowerconditioner swathboard is easily adjusted with a position control handlerequiring one hand to operate.

It is still another object of this invention to provide a disc cutterbarsupport for a mower conditioner that withstands the flexing motionimparted by the disc cutterbar without transmitting the flexing motionto the header side sheets.

It is another feature of this invention that the mower conditioner disccutterbar support incorporates a spherical bushing to accommodateflexing movement induced into the cutterbar.

It is still another feature of this invention that the mower conditionerdisc cutterbar support arms incorporate a spacer utilizing conicalwashers and corresponding sockets in the spacers to limit the verticalmovement of the cutterbar relative to the header.

It is yet another advantage of this invention that the flexing motion ofthe cutterbar will not cause damage to the header side sheets.

It is still another advantage of this invention that the header sidesheets do not have to be reinforced to withstand flexing movementstransmitted from the cutterbar.

It is a further advantage of this invention that the spherical bushingsallow sufficient movement of the cutterbar relative to the header topermit one end of the cutterbar to be disconnected from the headerwithout requiring disconnection of the other end of the cutterbar.

It is still a further advantage of this invention that the conicalwashers and corresponding sockets minimizes wear in the spacer toprolong the life of the spherical joint supporting the disc cutterbarsupport arm.

It is yet another object of this invention to provide a viney crop guidefor the inboard end of a disc mower conditioner to force the viney cropinto engagement with the first disc cutter.

It is a further feature of this invention that the viney crop guide isgenerally planar in shape with a leading edge that has a curved portionto direct the viney crops downwardly as the guide is advanced into thecrop to be cut.

It is yet a further feature of this invention that the viney crop guidecan be used as an optional attachment mounted by fasteners from themower conditioner header shroud.

It is yet a further advantage of this invention that the lower portionof the viney crop guide is bent inwardly to contain and control the flowof crop material carried around by the outer disc.

It is yet another advantage of this invention that the viney crop guidepermits operation of a disc mower conditioner in viney crop conditionswithout increased power requirements resulting from the conditioningrolls engaging unsevered viney crop.

It is still another object of this invention to provide a disc mowerconditioner incorporating a modular disc cutterbar which is durable inconstruction, inexpensive of manufacture, carefree of maintenance,facile in assemblage, and simple and effective in use.

These and other objects, features and advantages are accomplishedaccording to the instant invention by providing a disc mower conditionerutilizing a modular disc cutterbar to sever standing crop material byimpact action. The cutterbar is supported from the header of the mowerconditioner by a pair of transversely spaced support arms mounted byspherical bushings to the header to allow flexing of the support arms asinduced by the cutterbar. The mounting of the spherical bushings utilizeconical washers engagable with conical sockets in spacers to limitvertical movement of the spacer relative to the header when thecorresponding support arm flexes. The mower conditioner header furtherincludes an optional viney crop guide that has a curved leading edgethat directs viney crop downwardly into engagement with the adjacentdisc cutter. The viney crop guide is also bent inwardly to contain andcontrol the flow of crop material. The mower conditioner swathboardincludes a position control mechanism that incorporates a positive downstop in the form of a pin riding within a corresponding slotted openingin an associated bracket to prevent the swathboard from coming into aninadvertent engagement with the conditioning rolls.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The advantages of this invention will be apparent upon consideration ofthe following detailed disclosure of the invention, especially whentaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a disc mower conditioner incorporating theprinciples of the instant invention, the conventional draft tongue andPTO shaft being broken off for purposes of clarity;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the disc mower conditioner takenalong lines 2--2 of FIG. 1 to depict a right side elevational view ofthe disc mower conditioner;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged top plan view of the modular disc cutter bar asutilized in the disc mower-conditioner shown in FIG. 1, the headersupport structure being broken off for purposes of clarity;

FIG. 4 is a rear elevational view of the disc cutterbar corresponding tolines 4--4 of FIG. 3, the solid and hollow arrows correspondingrespectively to depict the flexing of the cutterbar support arms;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view taken along lines5--5 of FIG. 3 to show the mounting of the cutterbar support arm by aspherical bushing;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view corresponding to FIG.5 but with the support arm twisted in response to the flexing of thedisc cutterbar corresponding to the solid arrows of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view corresponding to FIG.5 but with the support arm twisted in response to the flexing of thedisc cutterbar corresponding to the hollow arrows of FIG. 4;

FIG. 8 is a top plan view of a disc mower conditioner incorporating theprinciples of the instant invention relating to the swathboard positioncontrol mechanism, the conventional draft tongue and PTO shaft beingbroken off for purposes of clarity;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the disc mower conditionertaken along lines 9--9 of FIG. 8 to show a side elevational view of theswathboard position control mechanism;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the disc mowerconditioner similar to that of FIG. 9, but with the handle controlmechanism bottomed out against the down stop, the phantom linesdepicting the relative position of the handle control mechanism at thepermissible extreme raised position;

FIG. 11 is a partial cross-sectional view of the handle controlmechanism taken along lines 11--11 of FIG. 9;

FIG. 12 is a partial cross-sectional view of the handle controlmechanism taken along lines 12--12 of FIG. 9, the movement of the handleto vary the position of the swathboard being shown in phantom;

FIG. 13 is a top plan view of an alternative disc mower conditionerincorporating the principles of the instant invention relating to theviney crop guide, the conventional draft tongue and PTO shaft beingbroken off for purposes of clarity;

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of the disc mower conditioner takenalong lines 14--14 of FIG. 13 to depict a right side elevational view ofthe disc mower conditioner;

FIG. 15 is a partial cross-sectional view of the disc mower conditionertaken along lines 15--15 of FIG. 14 to depict a front elevational viewof the disc mower conditioner; and

FIG. 16 is a perspective detail view of the viney crop guide.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring now to the drawings and, particularly, to FIGS. 1 and 2, thedisc mower conditioner utilizing a modular disc cutterbar andincorporating the principles of the instant invention can best be seen.Left and right references are used as a matter of convenience and aredetermined by standing at the rear of the machine facing forwardly intothe normal direction of travel.

The disc mower conditioner 10 is provided with a generally conventionalframe 11 mobilely supported over the ground by a pair of transverselyspaced wheels 12 and a draft tongue 14 attached to the tractor (notshown), as is known in the art. Rotational power is delivered from thetractor (not shown) to the disc mower conditioner 10 by a power-take-off(PTO) shaft 16 rotatably coupled with the tractor in a conventionalmanner. As is known in the art, the draft tongue 14 is pivotallyconnected to the implement frame 11, the pivotal movement thereof beingcontrolled by a hydraulic cylinder 19 interconnecting the tongue 14 andthe frame 11. Through manipulation of the hydraulic cylinder 19, thedisc mower conditioner 10 can be moved between a transport positionbehind the tractor and an operative position outboard to the right ofthe tractor so that the disc mower conditioner 10 can be operatedwithout the tractor (not shown) running over the standing crop.

The frame 11 supports a header 20 suspended therefrom by a flotationmechanism 22 so that the header 20 can move vertically relative to theframe 11 to enable the header 20 to follow ground undulations and toallow the header 20 to be raised into an elevated transport position.The header 20 rotatably supports a conditioning mechanism 25, preferablyin the form of a pair of intermeshing conditioning rolls 26 that receivesevered crop therebetween and conditions the severed crop material. Theconditioning rolls 26 discharge the crop material rearwardly into a pairof laterally spaced windrow shields 28 that consolidate the severed andconditioned crop into a windrow formed behind the implement 10.

A swathboard 29 is pivotally supported from the frame 11 to beselectively pivotable into engagement with the crop material dischargedfrom the conditioning mechanism 25 to deflect the crop materialdownwardly into a swath substantially as wide as the width of cut of theheader 20 before the discharge crop material can reach the windrowshields 28. Pivotal movement of the swathboard 29 is controlled by ahandle control mechanism 50 described in greater detail below.

Referring now to FIGS. 1-4, the header 20 supports at a leading edgethereof a disc cutterbar 30, preferably of the modular type described ingreater detail in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No.08/673,604, filed concurrently herewith and entitled "Disc Cutterbar forAgricultural Implements", the descriptive portions of which areincorporated herein by reference. Generally, the cutterbar 30 isprovided with a number of transversely spaced, rotatable disc cutters 32carrying knives 33 that are operable to sever standing crop material byimpact upon rotation of the disc cutters 32. Operative power for drivingthe rotation of the disc cutters 32 is supplied by the PTO shaft 16through a gearbox 17 to a power input shaft 18 operably driving therotation of the first disc cutter 34, which is then transferred by adrive mechanism (not shown) to the other disc cutters 32.

The cutterbar 30 is supported from the header 20 by a pair of laterallyspaced support arms 35 that are connected to the remote transverse endsof the cutterbar 30. As can be seen best in FIGS. 3 and 5-7, each of thesupport arms 35 are mounted on two support bolts 36, 37 carried by theframe 11 so as to provide a pivotable connection between the cutterbar30 and the header 20. The pivotable connection permits the cutterbarsupport arms 35 to twist about horizontal axes generally correspondingto the longitudinally extending support arms 35, so that the cutterbar30 can deflect vertically without transmitting the twisting loads to thestructure of the header 20. This configuration reduces the forces on theheader side sheets 24 and eliminates the need to reinforce the sidesheets 24 to withstand the flexing forces from the twisting cutterbarsupport arms 35.

A spherical bushing 39 is used to mount the support arms 35 on each ofthe support bolts 36, 37 to accommodate the twisting motion of thesupport arms 35. As seen in FIG. 4, an upward force, such as would beimposed on the cutterbar 30 by a rising ground undulation, representedby the solid arrow 41 will result in a twisting of the support arms 35as represented by the solid arrows 42 and depicted by the movement ofthe support arm 35 in FIG. 6, as compared to the straight forwardposition shown in FIG. 5. Conversely, a downward force, such as would beimposed by the weight of the cutterbar 30 when a falling groundundulation is encountered, represented by the hollow arrow 43 in FIG. 4will result in a twisting of the support arms 35 as represented by thehollow arrows 44 in FIG. 4 and depicted by the movement of the supportarm 35 in FIG. 7, as compared to the position shown in FIG. 5.

The twisting of the support arms 35 represented in FIGS. 6 and 7 areaccommodated by the spherical bushings 39 mounting each of the supportarms 35 on the support bolts 36, 37. A hardened spacer 45 surrounds eachof the support bolts 36, 37, which pass through the respective spacers45. In turn, the spacers 45 and bolts 36, 37 pass through two plates 47,48 fixed to the header to straddle support the spacer 45 and respectivebolts 36, 37. The spacer 45 fits loosely in the spherical bushings 39,which permits easy removal of the spacer 45 so the cutterbar 30 can beremoved readily from the header 20 when it needs to be worked on. Thespherical joints 39 will permit one end of the cutterbar to drop downwhen the spacers 45 and respective bolts 36, 37 are removed to permitremoval of a cutterbar module 31 for repair or replacement. Accordingly,both ends of the cutterbar 20 do not have to be disconnected from theheader 20.

The spherical joints 39, which move relative to each other, have a smallclearance and are hardened. The close clearance reduces the amount thatthe cutterbar 30 can deflect vertically as the support arms 35 move inthe vertical plane by rocking about the two pivotal connections. Aminimal vertical movement of the cutterbar 30 is important to reduce thechance of the knives 33 hitting the lower conditioning roll 26 and tominimize the wear on the drive coupling 18.

As best seen in FIGS. 5-7, the spherical bushings 39 are positioned bythe hardened spacer 45 which has an internal conical seat 46 on each endthereof alignable with conical sockets 49 in the corresponding plates47, 48. Conical washers 40 are positioned at each end of the spacer 45.The respective bolt 36, 37 clamps the corresponding conical washers 40into both the conical sockets 49 of the plates 47, 48 and the conicalseats 46 of the spacers 45 due to the deflection of one of the headerplates 47. The conical washers 40 position the spacers 45 radiallywithin the plate bores, eliminating the looseness and possibility offurther looseness due to wear.

Referring now to FIGS. 8-12, the swathboard position control mechanism50 can best be seen. The swathboard 29 is pivotally moveable about apivot member 29a between a raised position, as shown in phantom in FIG.10 in which the conditioned crop material discharged from theconditioning mechanism 25 is consolidated by the windrow shields 28, anda lowered position in which the crop material discharged from theconditioning mechanism 25 is deflected downwardly to the ground beforereaching the windrow shields 28. The control mechanism 50 is operable tocontrol the position of the swathboard 29.

The control mechanism 50 includes an actuating handle 51 that isattached by a bolt 52 to a bracket 53 that in turn is affixed to theswathboard 29, as by welding. The bolt 52 also permits a transversepivoting movement of the handle 51 to permit adjustment of theswathboard 29 as will be described in greater detail below. The bracket53 carries a stop pin 55 which is fixed relative thereto andpositionable within a curved slot 57 formed within an associatedposition bracket 56. The position bracket 56 also has formed therein aplurality of elongated openings 58 that are aligned in an arc to beengageable with a locking tab 54 affixed to the handle 51 and moveabletherewith about the bolt 52.

The bracket 53 also carries a cantilevered spring support pin 59 and anassociated spring 59a that is compressed between the handle 51 and thebracket 53 to bias the pivotal movement of the handle 51 about the pivotbolt 52 toward engagement with the position bracket 56. The cantileveredpin 59 passes through the actuating handle 51 to terminate just short ofthe position bracket 56. Because of the nature of the pivotal movementof the handle 51 about the bolt 52, the opening 51a in the handle 51 forpassage of the pin 59 must be somewhat slot-shaped.

In operation, the position of the swathboard 29 to obtain the bestwindrow configuration from the crop material being discharged from theconditioning mechanism 25 is a function of the crop moisture, weight,volume and the desired windrow width. To vary the position of theswathboard 29, the operator needs to pivotally deflect the actuatinghandle 51 to release the locking tab 54 from the elongated opening 58 inwhich the tab 54 was engaged and reposition the swathboard 29, whichthrough the bracket 53 is affixed to the handle 51 and is directlymovable therewith, by moving the handle 51 until the licking tab 54 isaligned with the appropriate elongated opening 58, whereupon theoperator allows the compression spring to re-engage the locking tab 54with the selected elongated opening.

The stop pin 55 rides within the curved slot 57 formed in the positionbracket 56. In the event that the handle 51 is inadvertently dropped,the engagement of the stop pin 55 with the curved slot 57 will bottomout and prevent the swathboard 29 from dropping so low as to impact theconditioning mechanism. Likewise, the upper limit of the curved slot 57will allow the stop pin 55 to bottom out against the top of the curvedslot 57 and, thereby, limit the complete range of movement to whateveris defined by the curved slot 57.

Referring now to FIGS. 13-16, an optional crop guide 60 for use inassisting the proper cutting of viney crops can best be seen. The guide60 is positioned at the left end of the disc mower conditioner header 20to the left of the cutterbar 30. The guide 60 consists of a plate 62which is detachably connected to the shroud structure 21 surrounding theleft end of the cutterbar 30 by fasteners 63. The forward edge 64 of theplate 62 is curved downwardly and rearwardly to guide vine stemsdownward as the plate 62 is moved forwardly into the uncut crop.

As the vines move downward through engagement with the curved leadingedge 64, they pass into the path of the cutting knife 33 of the firstcutter module 34, whereupon the vines are cut to permit the rearwardmovement of the severed portion of the vine to pass through theconditioning rolls 26 freely. The lower portion 65 of the plate 62 isbent inwardly to improve the flow and control the crop that may becarried around by the first disc cutter 34. The crop guide 60 isdesigned to be an optional attachment, easily installed to facilitateuse in viney crop conditions and removal in normal operating conditions.

It will be understood that changes in the details, materials, steps andarrangements of parts which have been described and illustrated toexplain the nature of the invention will occur to and may be made bythose skilled in the art upon a reading of this disclosure within theprinciples and scope of the invention. The foregoing descriptionillustrates the preferred embodiment of the invention; however,concepts, as based upon the description, may be employed in otherembodiments without departing from the scope of the invention.Accordingly, the following claims are intended to protect the inventionbroadly as well as in the specific form shown.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:
 1. In a mowerconditioner having a mobile frame; a crop harvesting header suspendedfrom said frame for movement relative thereto; a cutterbar mounted tosaid header from a pair of laterally spaced support arms and extendingforwardly from said header to sever standing crop material from theground; and a conditioning mechanism positioned to receive severed cropmaterial from said cutterbar to condition the severed crop materialbefore discharging the severed crop material onto the ground, theimprovement comprising:each of said support arms being supported on saidheader by two longitudinally spaced members, each of said memberscarrying a spherical bushing to limit any vertical movement of saidsupport arms relative to said header, yet permit a twisting of eachrespective said support arm relative to said header.
 2. The mowerconditioner of claim 1 wherein said members are support boltscorresponding to each said support arm to orient the two correspondingspherical bushings in a longitudinally spaced manner.
 3. The mowerconditioner of claim 2 wherein each said spherical bushing is mounted ona spacer having a conical seat at each opposing end thereof, each ofsaid members being supported by a pair of plates affixed to said header,each of said plates having a conical socket alignable with thecorresponding conical seat of said spacer.
 4. The mower conditioner ofclaim 3 wherein each said member is secured to said plates by conicalwashers engaged with the respective said conical seat in said spacer andthe conical socket in said plate.
 5. In a mower conditioner having amobile frame; a crop harvesting header suspended from said frame formovement relative thereto; a cutterbar mounted to said header from apair of laterally spaced support arms and extending forwardly from saidheader to sever standing crop material from the ground; and aconditioning mechanism positioned to receive severed crop material fromsaid cutterbar to condition the severed crop material before dischargingthe severed crop material onto the ground, the improvementcomprising:each of said support arms being connected to said header byspherical bushings to permit a twisting of each respective said supportarm relative to said header, each said support arms being supported bytwo longitudinally spaced members carried by said header, each of saidmembers bearing a spherical bushing, the utilization of two members foreach said support arm also limiting vertical movement of said cutterbarrelative to said header, each said spherical bushing being mounted on aspacer having a conical seat at each opposing end thereof, each of saidmembers being supported by a pair of plates affixed to said header, eachof said plates having a conical socket alignable with the correspondingconical seat of said spacer.